Ryanair promises pay rises after deal with German union

Collective labour agreement is now subject to a ballot by cabin crew based in Germany

Ryanair said the agreement confirms the application of German labour law to Ryanair’s cabin crew. Photograph: Wolfgang Rattay/File Photo/Reuters

Ryanair has signed a collective labour agreement with a German trade union and promised pay rises to cabin crew if they vote to accept the deal.

In a statement on Thursday, the airline said the agreement with Verdi, the German cabin crew union, to cover all of Ryanair’s German-based cabin crew, was now subject to a ballot.

Ryanair said the agreement confirms the application of German labour law to the airline’s cabin crew and delivers pay increases and other benefits for all Ryanair’s German-based cabin crew over the next two years.

Ryanair also confirmed that its Italian cabin crew have voted by 88 per cent in favour of the collective labour agreement signed recently between it and the three main cabin crew unions FIT CISL, Anpac and Anpav.

That agreement, which delivers pay and benefit improvements, will now apply to all of Ryanair’s cabin crew in Italy for the next three years.

Over the past week Ryanair has also signed new recognition agreements with cabin crew unions in Greece (RACU) and Sweden (Unionen). The airline said it would now work with those unions on long-term agreements.

Ryanair’s chief people officer, Eddie Wilson, said the agreements were a sign of the progress being made by the airline in dealing with unions.

“We are pleased to sign this collective labour agreement agreement with Verdi, which will lead to pay improvements and other benefits for our German-based cabin crew, subject to them voting in favour of this agreement over the coming week,” he said.